Panaji, Feb 27 (TOI): The state government has received an in-principle approval from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for construction of a Rs 100 crore worth overbridge at the Chimbel-Ribandar junction. The nearly 200m long overbridge will come up at the junction at Chimbel, across the bypass at Old Goa passing via the Kadamba Plateau.

The Old Goa bypass was constructed in 2004 and its expansion took place in 2014 at a cost of around Rs 300 crore.

Construction of the Chimbel overbridge, however, has been pending as land acquisition for the project was challenged in the high court. The project, which was earlier expected to be completed by 2016, was delayed and had to be then reworked to ensure its faster completion.

While the Old Goa bypass helped commuters avoid the Ribander causeway while travelling on the Panaji-Old Goa route and further towards Ponda, traffic would still slow down near the Chimbel junction, despite the four-laning, as vehicles meet at this crossroads. The Chimbel overbridge, once constructed, will allow vehicles on the bypass a faster passage.

Further ahead on the bypass route, a vehicular underpass is under construction at the Old Goa-Karmali junction, which will also do away with clashing of vehicles at this spot. The estimated cost of this underpass is Rs 40 crore.

Speeding vehicles on the Old Goa bypass, including heavy vehicles, since the expansion of this part of the NH 4 has become a cause for the concern for locals of Chimbel and Old Goa. The absence of vehicular overbridges and underpasses at junctions have resulted in them becoming accident prone zones.